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Stephen Curry
Wardell Stephen "Steph" Curry II (born March 14, 1988) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Listed at 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) tall and weighing 190 lb (86 kg),2 Curry plays the point guard position and is considered by some to be the greatest shooter in NBA history. The 2015 NBA Most Valuable Player and a two-time NBA All-Star, he is the son of former NBA player Dell Curry. Curry played college basketball for Davidson. There, he was twice named Southern Conference Player of the Year and set the all-time scoring record for both Davidson and the Southern Conference. During his sophomore year, Curry also set the single-season NCAA record for three-pointers made. Curry was selected with the seventh overall pick in the 2009 NBA draft by the Golden State Warriors. During the 2012–13 season, he set the NBA record for three-pointers made in a regular season with 272. The next season, Curry and teammate Klay Thompson set the NBA record for combined threes in a season with 484 as the pair were given the nickname the "Splash Brothers". In 2014–15, Curry eclipsed his own record by knocking down his 273rd three-pointer on April 9, 2015, finishing the regular season with 286 three-pointers and was named MVP after leading the Warriors to a franchise-record and NBA-best 67 wins on the season. Curry led the Warriors to their first NBA championship since 1975. Early Life Curry was born in Akron, Ohio but grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. Curry comes from an athletic family. His father Dell played professional basketball in National Basketball Association (NBA) mainly with the Charlotte Hornets, while his mother, Sonya played volleyball at Virginia Tech. His younger brother, Seth, is also a professional basketball player and his younger sister, Sydel, plays college volleyball at Elon University. Curry's father often took him and his younger brother Seth to his games, where they would sometimes shoot around with his team during warm-ups. As a child, he attended a Montessori school that had been started by his mother, Sonya. From 2001 to 2002, Curry lived in Toronto during his father's tenure with the Toronto Raptors, attending middle school as an eighth grade student at Queensway Christian College in Etobicoke, Ontario. There, he was a member of the grades 7 and 8 boys basketball team, leading them to an undefeated season. High school career Curry attended Charlotte Christian School in Charlotte, North Carolina. At Charlotte Christian School Curry was named all-state, all-conference, and team MVP while he led his team to three conference titles and three state playoff appearances. He finished his senior season by shooting over 48% from three-point range. Despite the success Curry had in high school, the then 6'0, 160-pound senior did not receive any scholarship offers from major-conference schools. Since Curry's father played for Virginia Tech and is in their Hall of Fame, Curry wanted to play for the Hokies, but the Hokies only offered him a place as a walk-on Curry chose Davidson College, a school that had not won an NCAA Tournament game since 1969. College career Freshman season Before Stephen Curry played even one college game, head coach, Bob McKillop, said at a Davidson Alumni event, "Wait till you see Steph Curry. He is something special." In his second collegiate game against the University of Michigan, Curry scored 32 points, dished out 4 assists, and grabbed 9 rebounds. Curry led the Southern Conference in scoring, averaging 21.5 points per game and was second in the nation among freshmen in scoring, to Texas' Kevin Durant, who ended up being the 2nd pick in the 2007 NBA Draft. Curry's scoring ability helped the Wildcats to a 29–5 overall record and a Southern Conference regular season title. On March 2, 2007, in the Southern Conference semi-finals, facing Furman University, Curry set the NCAA freshman season record for 3-point field goals with 113, topping the previous season record of 109 set by Keydren Clark of St. Peter's. Curry eclipsed the school freshman scoring record with his 502nd point against University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on February 6, 2007. On March 15, 2007, Davidson marched into the NCAA Tournament as a 13 seed set to play the University of Maryland. Even though Davidson lost 82–70, Curry was the leading scorer with 30 points and received a standing ovation when he fouled out. Curry ended his freshman season with 730 total points, including 122 3-point field goals. After the season ended Curry was selected for the USA team that appeared at the 2007 FIBA U19 World Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia. Despite playing only 18 minutes per game, Curry averaged 9.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 45% from the floor. Curry was selected as Southern Conference Freshman of the Year, Tournament MVP, All-tournament team, All-freshman team, and first team All-SoCon. He also was named an honorable mention in Sports Illustrated's All-Mid-Major. 'Sophomore season' Coming off a stellar freshman season, Curry was eager to impress again. In this season Davidson played a tough non-conference schedule, including North Carolina, Duke, NC State, and UCLA. Despite being lightly regarded these games, against top-ranked opponents, were very close, but unfortunately for Curry and the Wildcats, all were losses. Curry, however, played well in each game, scoring 24 against UNC, 20 against Duke,29 against NC State, and 15 against UCLA. On February 13, 2008, Curry's 41-point game against UNC-Greensboro helped Davidson come back from a 20-point first half deficit to win. Curry once again led the Southern Conference in scoring, averaging 25.5 points per game and ended up fifth in Division I in scoring, while adding 4.7 rebounds per game and 2.8 assists per game. His scoring and leadership abilities led the Wildcats to a 26–6 regular season record, and a 20–0 conference record. As a result Davidson earned its third straight NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship Tournament bid in 2008 (as a "10" seed). On March 21, 2008, Davidson matched up with seventh seeded Gonzaga. Despite Gonzaga being ahead by as many as 11 points early in the second half of this game, Curry scored 30 points in that half to push Davidson to their first NCAA Tournament win since 1969, 82–76. Curry ended up with 40 points, going 8-for-10 from 3-point range.On March 23, Davidson played second seeded Georgetown in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Georgetown entered the game as a heavy favorite after an appearance in the Final Four in 2007 and holding a number eight national ranking. Curry was held to only five points in the first half of the game, and his team trailed by 17 points at that point. However, Curry scored 25 points in the second half to push Davidson to a stunning 74–70 win. On March 28, 2008, Curry led Davidson to another upset win against third-seeded Wisconsin. With LeBron James in attendance Curry scored 33 points over his defender Michael Flowers, who was considered one of the best defensive guards in the nation. Davidson won easily, 73–56, advancing to the Elite 8 for the first time since 1969. In this game Curry joined Clyde Lovellette, Kansas, Jerry Chambers, Utah, and Glenn Robinson, Purdue, as the only college players to score over 30 points in their first four career NCAA tournament games. Curry also tied the single-season record for most three-pointers made in one season set by Darrin Fitzgerald of Butler in 1986–87 with 158.He set the record in the next game, against the Kansas Jayhawks, with his 159th three-pointer of the season. Despite Curry's 25 points, Davidson fell to the top-seeded and eventual national champion Jayhawks 59–57 on March 30, 2008. Curry was named to the Associated Press' All-America Second Team on March 31, 2008. He also was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Midwest Region of the 2008 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship Tournament, becoming the first player from a team not making the Final Four to do so since Juwan Howard of Michigan in 1994. Curry was nominated for an ESPY in the Breakthrough Player of the Year category. 'Junior season' After Davidson's loss in the NCAA Regional Finals against Kansas, Curry announced that he would return for his junior year. Curry said he wanted to develop as a point guard and be able to create his own shot to get ready for the NBA. On November 18, 2008, Curry scored a career-high 44 points in Davidson's 82–78 loss to Oklahoma.He extended a career-long streak by scoring at least 25 points for the seventh straight game. On November 21, Curry registered a career-high 13 assists, to go along with 30 points, in Davidson's 97–70 win over Winthrop.He was held scoreless in a 78–48 win over Loyola on November 25. Loyola double-teamed Curry constantly in a historic game in his career — it was the first ever time he failed to score and only his second collegiate game without double digits.In Davison's next game (11 days later) Curry matched his career-high of 44 in a 72–67 win over North Carolina State. Scoring Davidson's final 10 points, he helped his team clinch the game in the last moments with a three-point shot from 30ft, and two clinching free throws with 4.1 seconds remaining. He also had a team-high 3 steals. On December 20 Curry went cold in the John Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis. Going 5-for-26 field goals, including hitting only 2-of-12 threes, he finished with only 13 points against Purdue and its defense (led by Chris Kramer), resulting in the Wildcats' second loss of the season, a score of 76–58. On January 3, 2009, Curry surpassed the 2000-point mark for his career, as he scored 21 points against Samford; he had accomplished this feat in just his 83rd career game.On January 7, 2009, Curry scored 29 points in a loss to Duke, and as a result became the second leading scorer in Davidson's history. On January 28, 2009, Curry made a 75ft shot as time expired in the first half in a 92–70 win against Chattanooga. On February 14, 2009, Curry rolled his ankle in the second half of a win over Furman University. The injury caused Curry to miss the February 18 game against The Citadel, and was the first/only game he missed in his college career. Curry became Davidson's all time leading scorer on February 28, 2009, surpassing previous record holder John Gerdy. Stephen Curry scored 34 points in a 99–56 win against Georgia Southern, giving Curry 2,488 points for his career. Although Curry opted out of his senior year at Davidson, he still wanted to earn a degree, so he took online summer classes to that end. College statistics Regular Season Averages Season Team G PTS REB AST STL BLK FG% 3P% FT% MIN TO 2006–07 Davidson Wildcats 34 21.5 4.6 2.8 1.8 0.2 .463 .408 .855 30.9 2.8 2007–08 Davidson Wildcats 36 25.9 4.6 2.9 2.1 0.4 .483 .439 .894 33.1 2.6 2008–09 Davidson Wildcats 34 28.6 4.4 5.6 2.5 0.2 .454 .387 .876 33.7 3.7 Totals 104 25.3 4.5 3.7 2.1 0.3 .467 .412 .876 32.6 3.0 College records * All-time Davidson College leader in points (2,635); 3-point field goals (414); free throws (479); 30-point games (30); 40-point games (6) * Single-season NCAA 3-point field goals (162, 2007–08) * Single-season NCAA freshman 3-point field goals (122, 2006–07) * Single-season Davidson College points (974); steals (86) * Single-season Davidson College freshman points (730, 2006–07) Professional career '2009–10 season' In the 2009 NBA Draft in June 2009 the Golden State Warriors selected Curry in the first round with the seventh overall pick. He subsequently signed a four-year, $12.7 million contract in July 2009. Curry made his NBA regular season debut on October 28, 2009 in the Warriors' 2009–10 season opener against the Houston Rockets. Curry started the game and finished with 14 points, seven assists, four steals and two turnovers in 36 minutes of play. On January 23, 2010, Curry finished with a then career high 32 points in a game against the New Jersey Nets as the Warriors looked to Curry to carry the team while Monta Ellis was out with an injury. On February 10, 2010, Curry got his first triple-double in his career with 36 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds, including 7-of-11 from 3-point range. On April 7, 2010, Curry came close to a quadruple-double finishing with 27 points, 14 assists, 8 rebounds and 7 steals in Don Nelson's 1,333rd win as an NBA head coach, as Nelson set a new NBA record for career coaching wins. Curry also had a rookie high of 5 30-point, 10-assist games, which was also the 3rd most in the league behind Lebron James and Dwyane Wade. He broke an NBA record for most threes made in a season by a rookie with 166 made on .437 accuracy. Curry was invited to play on the rookie team in the Rookie-Sophomore game during the 2010 NBA All-Star Weekend, in which he scored 14 points to help the rookies defeat the sophomores. Due to Curry's dominant performance with the Warriors in his rookie season, he was a contender for the 2009–2010 NBA Rookie of the Year Award. On April 14, 2010, Curry scored a new career high 42 points in the last game of the season in a win against the Portland Trail Blazers. Curry finished second in the Rookie of the Year voting, behind Sacramento Kings guard Tyreke Evans, and was one of the three unanimous selections to the 2010 All-Rookie First Team, alongside Evans and Brandon Jennings of the Milwaukee Bucks. He averaged 17.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 1.9 steals for the season as Golden State went 26-56 and missed the playoffs. '2010–11 season' During the 2011 NBA All-Star Weekend, Curry beat Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder to win the Taco Bell Skills Challenge with a time of 28.2 in the final round. Stephen Curry was also the recipient of the NBA Sportsmanship Award for the 2010–2011 season. He averaged 18.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.5 steals, and he shot .442% from 3 point range for the season as Golden State went 36-46 and missed the playoffs. '2011–12 season' In May of 2011 Curry had surgery on his right ankle to repair torn ligaments he got from multiple sprains during the 2010-11 season. Curry was ready to play by the start of the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season with his new head coach Mark Jackson. But he sprained his surgically repaired right ankle just days before the season started, during a exhibition game at Sacramento. He still started the season opener vs. the Clippers, but only had 4 points on 2-12 shooting. The next game vs. the Chicago Bulls, Curry had 21 points and 10 assists to lead the Warriors to a 99-91 victory, but rolled his right ankle and missed the next game. He came back for 3 games and sprained his right ankle again on January 4th and had to sit out 8 games. He returned January 20th for the next 16 games before he strained a tendon in his right foot in a game vs. the Phoenix Suns on February 22nd and was out for the next 4 games. On March 5th Curry returned vs. the Washington Wizards for 4 games before he had season ending arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle in April of 2012. The injury plagued season ended with Curry only seeing action in 26 of 66 games with averages of 14.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.5 steals and he shot .455% from 3 point range. Golden State went 23-43 on the season and missed the playoffs. '2012–13 season' After months of rehab he was ready for training camp. Despite another right ankle problem during the pre-season, Curry signed a 4 year $44 million dollar contract extension before the 2012-13 season started. Curry was ready for the start of the season and averaged over 20 points a game in the months of November and December. He missed 4 games in January due to his right ankle problems. He did play in 11 of 15 games in January and averaged 23.5 points and 6.3 assists in them. Curry had a very good February. He averaged 25.4 points and 6.9 assists for the month, including a big game on February 27, 2013, when Curry scored 54 points as the Warriors fell to the Knicks, 109-105. He shot 18 for 28 from the field, making a Warriors franchise-record 11 three pointers on 11 of 13 shooting from 3 point range. The 54 points Curry had was the third highest total by a Knicks opponent in the current Madison Square Garden, trailing Kobe Bryant's 61 points in February of 2009 and Michael Jordan's 55 points in March of 1995. His 54 points were also the most any player had recorded in the 2012–13 season to that point. The 11 3-pointers were good for second most all-time in one game, behind marks set by Kobe Bryant (1/7/03) and Donyell Marshall (3/13/05), who both hit 12 3-pointers in one game. On the final day of the regular season, Curry broke the NBA record for three pointers made in a single regular season. Curry finished the season with 272 made three pointers, three more than previous record holder Ray Allen. Warriors coach Mark Jackson called Curry and Klay Thompson the best shooting duo at the guard position in NBA history.The two combined made 483 three-pointers, the most ever by an NBA duo. Curry averaged 22.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, 6.9 assists, and 1.6 steals, and he shot 45.3% from 3 point range during the regular season. Golden State went 47–35, earning the sixth seed in the 2013 NBA Playoffs and a matchup with the Denver Nuggets in the first round. This is the first playoff series for Curry and many of his teammates. In Game 2 of the 2013 NBA Playoffs first round matchup with the Denver Nuggets, Curry recorded 30 points and 13 assists as the Warriors beat the Nuggets 131-117 and broke their franchise-best 24-game home winning streak. In Game 3 of the same series, Curry recorded 29 points and 11 assists to help rally the Warriors to a 110-108 victory against the Nuggets. '2013–14 season' On December 7, 2013, in a 108-82 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, Curry broke Jason Richardson's franchise record for most three-point field goals made in a career with 701, doing so in fewer attempts. Curry made his first All-Star appearance after he was voted by the fans as a starter for the Western Conference. He finished the season averaging 24.0 points and 8.5 assists; both career bests. The Golden State Warriors finished with a 51-31 record and was the 6th seed in the Western Conference once again. They would face the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. On April 27, 2014, in Game 4 of the series, Curry scored 33 points, including a then playoff career-high seven three-pointers, as the Warriors beat the Clippers 118-97. Curry and the Warriors would go on to lose to the Clippers in seven games in the midst of the Donald Sterling controversy. He was named to the All-NBA Second Team for the first time. 2014–15 season On January 7, 2015, in a 117-102 win over the Indiana Pacers, Curry made his 1,000th career three-point field goal. He became the fastest player in NBA history to make 1,000 career three-pointers. It was Curry's 369th game; 88 fewer games than previous record-holder Dennis Scott (457) took to reach the milestone. On February 4, he scored a season-high 51 points on 16-of-26 shooting in a 128-114 win over the Dallas Mavericks. Curry was the overall leading vote-getter for the 2015 NBA All-Star Game, edging last year's top vote-getter, LeBron James. On February 14, 2015, Curry defeated teammate Klay Thompson and six others to win his first three-point contest during the 2015 NBA All-Star Weekend. Curry also wore sneakers that had Deah Shaddy Barakat's name on them (one of the victims of the 2015 Chapel Hill shooting). According to his sister Suzanne, Deah Barakat was known for his "love for basketball and anything Steph Curry." Deah's number for his intramural basketball team at North Carolina State University was Curry's #30 and he posed for a photo that was similar to one that Curry did for GQ.75 Curry said that Barakat's family "did a great job of reaching out to me and making me aware of the details of his life and personality … It was really kind of a cool deal to be able to use the platform yesterday to honor Deah and his family … I’m going to send them the shoes I wore yesterday. And hopefully they know that I’ve been thinking about them.” On April 9, 2015, Curry knocked down his 273rd three-pointer of the season, topping the mark of 272 he set in 2012–13. He finished the game with eight three-pointers and 45 total points as he helped the Warriors rally to a 116-105 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers. On May 4, he was named the recipient of the Maurice Podoloff Trophy as the 2014–15 NBA Most Valuable Player, joining Wilt Chamberlain as the only MVP winners in Warriors' franchise history (Chamberlain won the award during the 1959–60 season with what were then the Philadelphia Warriors). Despite only playing 32.7 minutes per game during the season, Curry ranked first in steals per game and free throw percentage, third in three point percentage, and sixth in points and assists per game. On May 13, 2015, in a 98-78 win over the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 5 of the Western Conference semi-finals, Curry became the fastest player to make 100 three-pointers in the playoffs, reaching the milestone in 28 games. Ray Allen held the previous record at 35. In addition, Curry became the first player in NBA history to have six three-pointers and six steals in a single playoff game. Three days later, in the series-clinching Game 6 victory, Curry made a playoff career-high 8 three-pointers, en route to 32 points, including a buzzer-beater from behind half-court. Curry propelled the Warriors to their first Western Conference Finals since 1976. On May 23, in a 115-80 win over the Houston Rockets in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, Curry broke the record for three-pointers made in a single post-season with his 59th coming in just 13 games. Reggie Miller set the previous mark of 58 in 2000 in 22 games. International career Curry is a two-time gold medalist as a member of the United States men's national basketball team in both 2010 and 2014. Player profile Curry is a 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) point guard who has established himself as one of the best shooters in NBA history and is considered by some to be the greatest shooter in NBA history. Curry is only the sixth point guard to win the MVP Award. His career averages are 20.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, 6.9 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. He led the league in three-point field goals made for three straight years, making 272 (NBA record) in 2012–13, 261 in 2013–14, and 286 (new NBA record) in 2014-15, and won the 2015 NBA Three-Point Shootout champion. As of the end of 2014–15 season, he had a 90.0% career free-throw shooting average and a 44.0% career three-point shooting average, and is the first player in the NBA history to lead the league in three-point field goals made three consecutive seasons. In addition, he lead the lead the league in free-throw shooting percentage, in 2011 (93.4 percent), and 2015 (91.4 percent). Unlike, most pure shooters Curry has scintillating ball-handle where he can shoot off the dribble and he is able to convert difficult three-point shots. This makes Curry particularly difficult to defend because he can score comfortably against most players anywhere on the court. He creates scoring opportunities by his ball-handling skills; upon beating his defender one-on-one by his handle so he able to penetrate deep into the paint which leads to easy shots for his teammates. NBA statistics 'Regular season' 'Playoffs' 'NBA career highlights' NBA champion: 2015 * NBA Most Valuable Player: 2015 * 2× NBA All-Star: 2014, 2015 * All-NBA First Team: 2015 * All-NBA Second Team: 2014 * 3× NBA three-point field goals leader: 2013, 2014, 2015 * 2× NBA free-throw percentage leader: 2011, 2015 * NBA Skills Challenge champion: 2011 * April 2013 NBA Western Conference Player of the Month * April 2014 NBA Western Conference Player of the Month * November 2014 NBA Western Conference Player of the Month * NBA regular season record for made three-pointers * Warriors franchise leader in three-point field goals made * Warriors franchise record for most three-pointers made in a game Personal life Curry is a Christian. Curry spoke about his faith during his MVP speech by saying, "People should know who I represent and why I am who I am, and that's because of my Lord and Savior." He also said the reason that he pounds his chest and points up is that he has a "heart for God" and as a reminder that he plays for God. On some of his "Curry One" basketball shoes, there is a lace loop scripted "4:13". It is a reference to the Bible verse Philippians 4:13. On July 30, 2011, Curry married Ayesha Alexander in Charlotte, North Carolina. The couple's daughter, Riley, was born on July 19, 2012. He and his wife are expecting their second child in July 2015. Curry wears the same number (#30) his dad wore while he was in the NBA. See also * List of NBA season leaders in three-point field goals * List of National Basketball Association career 3-point scoring leaders * List of National Basketball Association career playoff 3-point scoring leaders * List of National Basketball Association season free throw percentage leaders * NBA Most Valuable Player Award * 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans * List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders *Curry Family *Stephen and Ayesha Curry *Gallery:Curry Family *Gallery:Stephen Curry *Gallery:Stephen and Ayesha Curry References External links *NBA.com Profile *Davidson College player profile *ESPN player profile *The Next Step For Steph *FIBA.com video interview Category:NBA players